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The Transformation of Hunger: The Demand for Calories Past and Present

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  • Logan, Trevon D.

Abstract

According to conventional income measures, American and British industrial workers in the late nineteenth century were two to four times as wealthy as those in developing countries today. Estimated calorie expenditure elasticities of American and British industrial workers based on the 1888 Cost of Living Survey are greater than calorie elasticity estimates for developing countries today, which suggest that yesterday's wealthy workers were hungrier than today's poor. The result is robust to numerous criticisms. The finding implies an extraordinary improvement in nutritional well-being among the poor in the last century that has not been captured by our income estimates.

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  • Logan, Trevon D., 2009. "The Transformation of Hunger: The Demand for Calories Past and Present," The Journal of Economic History, Cambridge University Press, vol. 69(2), pages 388-408, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:cup:jechis:v:69:y:2009:i:02:p:388-408_00
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    1. Subramanian, Shankar & Deaton, Angus, 1996. "The Demand for Food and Calories," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 104(1), pages 133-162, February.
    2. Ward, Marianne & Devereux, John, 2003. "Measuring British Decline: Direct Versus Long-Span Income Measures," The Journal of Economic History, Cambridge University Press, vol. 63(3), pages 826-851, September.
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    1. Francisco J. Medina‐Albaladejo & Salvador Calatayud, 2020. "Unequal access to food during the nutritional transition: evidence from Mediterranean Spain," Economic History Review, Economic History Society, vol. 73(4), pages 1023-1049, November.
    2. Afonso, António & Martins, Manuel M.F., 2012. "Level, slope, curvature of the sovereign yield curve, and fiscal behaviour," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 36(6), pages 1789-1807.
    3. Bruno Lanz & Simon Dietz & Timothy Swanson, 2017. "Global Population Growth, Technology, And Malthusian Constraints: A Quantitative Growth Theoretic Perspective," International Economic Review, Department of Economics, University of Pennsylvania and Osaka University Institute of Social and Economic Research Association, vol. 58(3), pages 973-1006, August.
    4. Lanz, Bruno & Dietz, Simon & Swanson, Tim, 2018. "The Expansion of Modern Agriculture and Global Biodiversity Decline: An Integrated Assessment," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 144(C), pages 260-277.
    5. Casabonne, Ursula & Kenny, Charles, 2012. "The Best Things in Life are (Nearly) Free: Technology, Knowledge, and Global Health," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 40(1), pages 21-35.
    6. Ann Carlos & Frank D. Lewis, 2010. "Property Rights, Standards Of Living, And Economic Growth: Western Canadian Cree," Working Paper 1232, Economics Department, Queen's University.
    7. Ant Afonso & Christophe Rault, 2015. "Short- and long-run behaviour of long-term sovereign bond yields," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 47(37), pages 3971-3993, August.
    8. Francisco J. Medina-Albaladejo & Salvador Calatayud, 2021. "Children’s Diet during the Early Stages of the Nutritional Transition. The Foundlings in the Hospital of Valencia (Spain), 1852–1931," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(22), pages 1-15, November.
    9. Ian Gazeley & Rose Holmes & Andrew Newell & Kevin Reynolds & Hector Gutierrez Rufrancos, 2023. "Escaping from hunger before WW1: the nutritional transition and living standards in Western Europe and USA in the late nineteenth century," Cliometrica, Springer;Cliometric Society (Association Francaise de Cliométrie), vol. 17(3), pages 533-565, September.
    10. Trevon D. Logan, 2011. "Economies Of Scale In The Household: Puzzles And Patterns From The American Past," Economic Inquiry, Western Economic Association International, vol. 49(4), pages 1008-1028, October.
    11. Jonathan Chapman, 2020. "Extension of the Franchise and Government Expenditure on Public Goods: Evidence from Nineteenth-Century England," Working Papers 20200045, New York University Abu Dhabi, Department of Social Science, revised Mar 2020.
    12. Kris Inwood & Evan Roberts, 2010. "Longitudinal Studies Of Human Growth And Health: A Review Of Recent Historical Research," Journal of Economic Surveys, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 24(5), pages 801-840, December.
    13. Pan, Suwen & Fang, Cheng & Rejesus, Roderick M., 2008. "Food Calorie Intake under Grain Price Uncertainty: Evidence from Rural Nepal," 2008 Annual Meeting, July 27-29, 2008, Orlando, Florida 6198, American Agricultural Economics Association (New Name 2008: Agricultural and Applied Economics Association).
    14. Morgan Kelly & Cormac Ó Gráda, 2012. "Agricultural output, calories and living standards in England before and during the Industrial Revolution," Working Papers 201212, School of Economics, University College Dublin.
    15. Gazeley, Ian & Newell, Andrew T. & Bezabih, Mintewab, 2013. "The Transformation of Hunger Revisited," IZA Discussion Papers 7275, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    16. Ali, Mohammad & Joshi, Janak & Zhang, Bo, 2022. "Self-Reported Health and Nutrient Availability: Do Perceptions Matter?," International Journal of Food and Agricultural Economics (IJFAEC), Alanya Alaaddin Keykubat University, Department of Economics and Finance, vol. 10(4), October.
    17. Yusuf, Shahid & Nabeshima, Kaoru & Wei Ha, 2007. "What makes cities healthy ?," Policy Research Working Paper Series 4107, The World Bank.

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    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • D12 - Microeconomics - - Household Behavior - - - Consumer Economics: Empirical Analysis
    • I12 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Health Behavior
    • I31 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty - - - General Welfare, Well-Being
    • J10 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - General
    • N31 - Economic History - - Labor and Consumers, Demography, Education, Health, Welfare, Income, Wealth, Religion, and Philanthropy - - - U.S.; Canada: Pre-1913

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